FAO.org

World Bank recognizes FAO ICT project in Uganda

13/01/2014 -

A new World Bank study on mobile applications for the agricultural and forest sector recognizes FAO’s expertise on mobile data collection technology for drought preparedness in Uganda.

Published in December 2013, the study ICT for Data Collection and Monitoring & Evaluation assists development organizations to stay up-to-date with changing technology and to identify appropriate technology channels for data collection and monitoring and evaluation.

According to the report, FAO’s ICT work in Karamoja, Uganda, is an innovative best practice in implementing ICT in agriculture. As part of a regional initiative, community chiefs in 55 village centers in Karamoja were given mobile applications to collect and collate digital data on signs of drought. Via its social responsibility programme, Nokia provided the mobile phones and open-source software to collect the data, enabling remote access to realtime information. As a result, drought analysis is more accurate with the transmission period reduced to between five and seven days.

“This was a perfect partnership between FAO developing and technically supporting an ICT innovation solution, a local NGO rolling out the application at community level and national government assisting to make the project sustainable,” concludes Phil Fong, Regional Data and Information Coordinator at FAO Subregional Emergency Office for Eastern and Central Africa.

With funding coming to an end in 2013 and following the positive results, the UK's Department for DFID invested in a follow-up project. FAO Uganda is currently collaborating with the Ugandan ministry of agriculture to further embed the data collection technology in the ministry’s portfolio.